Columbia-based Blackwood Media Group enhances brands

Columbia-based Blackwood Media Group enhances brands

From left, Aaron Harlow, Justin Phelan and Ethan Young of Blackwood Media Group examine some of their work Friday. The business is based in downtown Columbia at 22 Public Square, Suite 11. (Staff photo by Tim Hodge)

The Blackwood Media Group’s operations are based at 22 Public Square, Suite 11, on the downtown square. The business moved to Columbia in August.

Blackwood specializes in website design and development but also creates graphic designs.

Co-owners Justin Phelan and Aaron Harlow share a similar story. Both grew up in Nashville, and their parents live in Chapel Hill. The two business partners attended Emmaus Bible College in Dubuque, Iowa, where they operated for 10 years. The company recently hired Ethan Young as business manager.

Moving to Columbia brought Phelan and Harlow closer to family.

The company began working with ministries and churches, helping the organizations fulfill their missions of spreading the Christian faith.

Phelan and Harlow said their faith is the core of their business.

“We enjoy commercial work, and we enjoy the actual labor of what we do — designing and developing — but the reason that we want to do what we do is to empower churches and ministries,” Phelan said.

He noted about 50 percent of their clients are churches or some type of Christian organization. They also work with nonprofits and medium-sized businesses.

Harlow said they can help clients develop a brand from scratch, or give them pointers on enhancing their current line of work.

“We get past what we call a ‘business card’ website which is strictly informational and not very interactive,” Harlow said. “No matter where they (clients) are starting from, we try to get them to the end goal.”

Streamlining a clients daily operations through their website is a top priority, Harlow said.

Blackwood designs websites that allow clients to manage content themselves, but they make sure the site is secure and operating properly from the back end.

Phelan said he enjoys being presented with a problem, working through it and giving the client a finished product.

“I love that challenge of being able to see it come to fruition,” Phelan said.

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